Small Business

16 Feb

Posted at 18:09h in IMC, Small Business by
Lots of people bemoan the fact that February often rolls around before their business marketing plan is complete. I'm here to stop the guilt once and for all. In my mind, February is the BEST month to write a marketing plan. Here's why:
  1. Most operational plans are not completed until the end of January. In order to create a successful marketing plan, you've got to have measurable goals or objectives that align with the overall organization's goals. This is impossible to do UNTIL you are thoroughly educated on the company's plans for the coming year. Taking time to review the overall goals is important to building a marketing plan with the correct focus. 
  2. Your competitors often jump out of the starting gate too fast. In other words, it's not a bad thing to wait and see what your next best competitor is doing in terms of new promotions or launches. Watching and waiting can help you fine tune your own marketing strategies to best the competition after their direction is already set.
  3. Just as your business creates new goals, so do your target customers. If you're creating personas as I think you should, January is a great time to trend watch, particularly if you're a consumer brand. Some things come into fashion and others go out, and you can spend your time doing surveys, re-engaging in social media and really understanding the personal goals of your target audience. Knowing your best customer really, really well might mean understanding how they're "turning over a new leaf" and incorporating into their plans. (By the way, if you want a good primer for finding your best customer, here's a SlideShare presentation I did last fall on the topic.)

13 Feb

Posted at 12:30h in Small Business, Social Media by
InstagramWe are constantly bombarded with images. TV advertisements, social media content, email messages or print articles—we're constantly having words and images thrown at us. But using the right images on the right platform can help your visual marketing strategy work.

Fast Facts

If you aren't using visual content consider this:
  • According to WishPond, 90 percent of information transmitted to the brain is visual and visuals are processed 60,000 times faster in the human brain than text.
  • WishPond studies have shown that posts with visuals have 94 percent more page visits than those which don’t.
  • Studies conducted in June of 2014 have shown that 23 percent of young people cite Instagram as their favorite social media platform, according to AdWeek.
  • There are 300 million accounts on the photo sharing app, according to Instagram.

Getting Started

02 Jan

Posted at 10:25h in Public Relations, Small Business by

Tips for Overcoming a Fear of Public Speaking

[caption id="attachment_5597" align="alignleft" width="150"]Marsha Friedman Marsha Friedman[/caption]

By Marsha Friedman

Recently, I was asked to be a panelist for a webinar about using the power of publicity to achieve your goals. The participants asked great questions. The first: “How do you step into the spotlight when you don’t like the spotlight?” Getting media attention and speaking engagements -- the spotlight -- goes right to the heart of my book, “Celebritize Yourself.” By boosting your visibility and your credibility, you set yourself apart from your competition and become a trusted authority in your field. Should you abandon that avenue if you don’t like the spotlight? Absolutely not. I was – and still am – that person. I had no desire to seek the spotlight, and even had trepidation about it, but eventually I realized I had to for the sake of my business.  First I had to figure out why I was so uncomfortable with the idea of being in the spotlight. The answer for me was simple: The thought of public speaking terrified me. I’d seen wonderful speakers, including my own brother, who could captivate huge audiences and have them hanging on every word. I knew I didn’t have that kind of talent so why bother even trying? Because, as I came to realize, I had to. I needed to do it in order to grow my business and, on a deeper level, I needed to do it for me! My fear was holding me back – an admission that became increasingly painful as time marched on. I talked to my brother about the problem. “It comes naturally to you and the other great speakers I’ve seen,” I told him. “But it doesn’t come naturally to me!” His response surprised me. “No, it doesn’t all come naturally,” he said. “I had to work at it.” For years, he spoke to small audiences at seminars. They proved an ideal training ground. He critiqued himself and got feedback from others so that he could constantly polish his delivery. So, first tip: Start small. Give yourself time to get used to the spotlight. Here are a few more tips for public speaking.